LITHUANIA SUPPORTS MOLDOVA IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 000686 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/19/2016 TAGS: OSCE PBTS PREL LH MD SUBJECT: LITHUANIA SUPPORTS MOLDOVA IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION, EURO-INTEGRATION REF: SECSTATE 115371 Classified By: Pol/Econ officer Traver Gudie for reason 1.4 b,d -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Lithuania strongly supports the U.S. position on the Transnistrian referendum and will continue to raise Transnistria in its dialogue with Russian on frozen conflicts (reftel). Lithuania considers Moldova one of the primary focuses of its neighborhood policy, and has recently engaged both EU structures and Russian Foreign Ministry officials about the Transnistrian conflict. Lithuania also strongly advocates for deeper EU and NATO integration of Moldova, and has recently stepped up its assistance programs to push Moldova along the road to euro-integration. Lithuania has leveraged funding from western European partners, especially the UK, to provide technical assistance to Moldova aimed at the Euro-integration process, and is co-hosting a conference on Moldovan euro-integration and conflict settlement in September. End Summary. -------------- -------------- LITHUANIA ENGAGES RUSSIA, EU ON TRANSNISTRIA CONFLICT -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) In response to reftel points, Acting Head of the MFA's Russia and Eastern Europe Department Arunas Vinciunas told us that Lithuania agrees with our points completely. Lithuania supports a negotiated and democratic settlement to the conflict, referring specifically to Ukrainian President Yushchenko's seven-point plan. "There can be no democratic settlement," said Vinciunas, "as long as Russia maintains troops in Transnistria." Vinciunas told us that Lithuanian Undersecretary Albinas Januska made this same point to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Karasin during the latter's visit to Vilnius in May, and called on Russia to live up to its Istanbul commitments to withdraw troops from Transnistria. Vinciunas said that Karasin tried to "argue away" the Istanbul Commitments with respect to Transnistria. Vinciunas said that Lithuania continues to promote "frank conversation" about the frozen conflicts in its bilateral relations with Russia. -------------- -------------- LITHUANIA HELPING MOLDOVA TOWARDS DEEPER EU INTEGRATION -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) As with Ukraine and Georgia, Lithuania views its primary assistance to Moldova to be political advocacy for Moldova's euro-integration process and support for "open-doors" accession policies in NATO and EU structures. Lithuania consistently advocates before the EU's General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) and other European structures for greater euro-integration of Moldova. Vinciunas told us that Moldova readily accepts Lithuania's advice on euro-integration, and since May 2006 the Lithuanian MFA has posted an advisor on euro-integration in the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Lithuanian MFA is co-hosting with the Moldovan MFA a conference in Chisinau, September 8-9, to bring European and American policy makers together with Moldovan officials and civil society leaders to discuss resolution of the conflict in Transnistria, euro-integration and regional cooperation between Moldova, Ukraine, and Romania. ¶4. (SBU) Lithuania is currently pressing European structures to extend discounts to Moldovan citizens on Schengen visas. Lithuania is asking that Moldovan citizens pay 35 rather than 60 euros for the visas. Echoing Lithuania's similar call for citizens of Belarus, Vinciunas outlined the importance of person-to-person contact in the euro-integration process. -------------- LITHUANIA STEPPING UP ASSISTANCE TO MOLDOVA -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Lithuania has begun an assistance program, in part financed by the United Kingdom, to help Moldova implement its EU Action Plan. As part of the program, a Lithuanian MFA official will sit in the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and help the Ministry implement different reforms aimed at deeper ties between the EU and Moldova. Moldovan desk officer Arturas Valionas told us that the Moldovan Foreign Minister seated the advisor next to his office as a significant sign of Moldovan buy-in to the project. Another ongoing project pays for Moldovan Ministry of Defense officials to study at the Baltic Defense College, and in a two-week course on NATO integration held in Vilnius. VILNIUS 00000686 002 OF 002 ¶6. (SBU) Valionas told us that Lithuania plans to increase its assistance, from four technical advisors to eight, to Moldova's Border Assistance Mission. The eight advisors from the Lithuanian security service focus on technical assistance to combat corruption and smuggling. According to Valionas, the assistance does little to address smuggling, as the Moldovan border guards do not control the problem areas along the Transnistria border. Nevertheless, the Lithuanian border guards have helped gather information about smuggling and brought transparency to the problem. Valionas told a story about how the border guards recently applied the normal entry procedures to Transnistrian leader Igor Smirnov, who, according to Valionas, had been accustomed to crossing the border without inspection. ¶7. (SBU) Lithuania is considering another assistance project to send sanitary experts to help Moldova attain international standards in its production of food products for export. Valionas conceded that this program was aimed directly at Russia's recent ban on Moldovan wines on sanitary grounds. He added that an international technical advisor could add transparency to the merits behind Russia's claims that Moldovan wine didn't meet Russia sanitary standards. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶8. (C) Lithuania can be counted on to support U.S. positions on the Transnistria conflict. Its keen interest in neighborhood policy and demonstrated willingness to engage Russia and European structures on European integration and frozen conflicts make Lithuania a valuable, willing interlocutor on these topics. KELLY